Australian PMA Parts Could Soon Be Shipping to U.S.

Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) recently reached an agreement with the FAA that extends an existing aviation treaty-level document to cover the manufacture of approved parts. The changes center on a bilateral aviation safety agreement that Australia and the U.S. signed in 2005. Included in the agreement are implementation procedures for airworthiness that outline the conditions for the “mutual acceptance of the design approval, production approval, airworthiness certification, and continuing airworthiness of civil aeronautical products, parts, and appliances between the two nations.” The original implementation procedures for airworthiness were limited and did not allow acceptance of Australian Parts Manufacturer Approvals (PMA), something that the new agreement permits. Once the Australian Parliament and the U.S. Congress have ratified the agreement, which is expected later this year, the FAA will accept Australian PMAs for “replacement and certain modified aircraft parts.” According to CASA, this will significantly reduce the cost and simplify the process of getting Australian parts into the “large U.S. market.” CASA said work is already under way to seek U.S. acceptance of STCs for rotorcraft and restricted-category aircraft, such as fire bombers.